Structural response analysis in time and frequency domain considering both ductility and strain rate effects under uniform and multiple-support earthquake excitations

The structural dynamic behavior and yield strength considering both ductility and strain rate effects are analyzed in this article. For the single-degree-of-freedom (SDOF) system, the relationship between the relative velocity and the strain rate response is deduced and the strain rate spectrum is presented. The ductility factor can be incorporated into the strain rate spectrum conveniently based on the constant-ductility velocity response spectrum. With the application of strain rate spectrum, it is convenient to consider the ductility and strain rate effects in engineering practice. The modal combination method, i.e., square root of the sum of the squares (SRSS) method, is employed to calculate the maximum strain rate of the elastoplastic multiple-degree-of-freedom (MDOF) system under uniform excitation. Considering the spatially varying ground motions, a new response spectrum method is developed by incorporating the ductility factor and strain rate into the conventional response spectrum method. In order to further analyze the effects of strain rate and ductility on structural dynamic behavior and yield strength, the cantilever beam (one-dimensional) and the triangular element (two-dimensional) are taken as numerical examples to calculate their seismic responses in time domain. Numerical results show that the permanent displacements with and without considering the strain rate effect are significantly different from each other. It is not only necessary in theory but also significant in engineering practice to take the ductility and strain rate effects into consideration.